Timothy J Solobay

People make mistakes, and when they do, they should pay for them. But for far too long in Pennsylvania, we have compounded some individual mistakes with policies that impose unnecessary penalties on the state at large. We have denied people a second chance to turn their lives around, and we all pay a price for that.

Last month, Pennsylvania took a significant step toward a much smarter, fairer and financially sensible system of criminal punishment when Gov. Tom Wolf signed Act 5 into law. When it takes effect in November, it will help us combat recidivism, cut our pardons backlog, and turn many former offenders from a burden on society into contributing members.

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